


Fake A Smile

by Marvelgeek42



Category: Original Work
Genre: Dystopia, Gen, May Or May Not Be Updated, POV Third Person, Present Tense, Wordcount: Over 1.000
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-29
Updated: 2020-11-29
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:21:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27783658
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marvelgeek42/pseuds/Marvelgeek42
Summary: « Good morning » said a cheerful voice behind the mirror. « How are you on this wonderful morning, my child? »Felicity asks us this question multiple times throughout the day. This is designed to keep all of us connected to both one another and what is going in the world. With the ratings they measure how happy we are and where they have to improve. At the end of each day the scores are made public. They remind us what a beautiful world they have created for us to live in.
Relationships: Other Relationship Tags to Be Added
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	Fake A Smile

**Author's Note:**

> This idea is from [@dvrrix on instagram](instagram.com/dvrrix), who also wrote the bare bones of this story, which I helped extend and, if I may be so bold, enhance.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> « Good morning » says a cheerful voice behind the mirror. « How are you on this wonderful morning, my child? »

With rays of sunlight falling on his skin, Lucky wakes up to a cheerful melody coming from the speakers. He rubs his eyes with his palms while listening to the melody, as he has been every morning for the past month, ever since Jubilee Peli’s idea had been deemed a positive addition to the routine. He barely even notices it anymore. It has become normal to him.

_« Good Morning, Good Morning_ _  
_ _How Do You Do_ _  
_ _Good Morning, Good Morning_ _  
_ _A Happy Day to You »_

Forcing himself out of the comfort of his bed, he makes his way to the bathroom. For a second he stares at himself in the mirror. Lucky is a young, handsome man of 22 years of age. Much to his annoyance, his slim figure and lack of facial hair make him seem much younger.  
He forms a smile with his thin lips. It is 7:15, time for the first rating of the day.

« Good morning » says a cheerful voice behind the mirror. « How are you on this wonderful morning, my child? »

Felicity asks us this question multiple times throughout the day. This is designed to keep all of us connected to both one another and what is going in the world. With the ratings they measure how happy we are and where they have to improve. At the end of each day the scores are made public. They remind us what a beautiful world they have created for us to live in.

« I’m fine. I slept very well. I’m ready to start the day. » Lucky answers. _4.5/5 stars._

It is a typical rating. Every day the score averages around 4.7 stars. Although in reality, the average might be closer to 4.6 or possibly even 4.5, which of course are still great scores. While it is truly rare that someone has a bad day, it is true that occasionally people exaggerate a bit.

« Thank you for your rating. To see you happy is what makes us happy. A happy day to you. » 

The voice behind the mirror is the voice of Felicity. No one really knows who she is. All we know is that she cares for us. She is the one who makes us happy.  
And she has done so for as long as this country has existed. After suffering from terror attacks on a daily basis for years, if not decades, of civil war, Felicity and her party gave us shelter. They built a gated state, the great state of ‘Euphemia’. Life as we knew from a time before had come back. The constant fear of dying, the sounds of bombs falling down at three in the morning and the loss of loving ones was now merely history.

The war is still happening, however, it is no longer taking place in Euphemia, but in the colonies. Euphemia is a state so secure and well protected that no one’s able to fight us. And to reinforce their power from within and enable them to keep providing us with a great life, people who are ungrateful for all the government does for us are sent to the colonies to fight in the war, they otherwise would have been spared from

After he has finished his rating, Lucky gets himself ready. He washes his face with cold water, brushes his teeth, and grabs some gel out of the cabinet to slick his hair back, like he always does.

* * *

Barely 10 minutes later, Lucky has arrived at his nearest Hall of Bliss. Every day you had to come by to get your daily dose of happy pills. They are supposed to make us happy.

The Halls of Bliss are the pride and joy of Euphemia. They are usually great, old buildings, the only things that remain from a time before. As you enter the building, you are greeted by the four columns of Hall of Bliss, representing the four institutions found here. Health, Art, Education and Family.

In the entrance of the building is the Wall of Prosper. They are the most important places in all of Euphemia. Each wall is covered entirely in screens. You can see every place, everyone in Euphemia and, most importantly, their smiles.

Beyond that, Lucky once more appreciates the true size of the building. Ceilings so high that they don’t seem to end; extravagant, molded walls and a massive chandelier in every room. Or at the very least in all those he has the pleasure to have seen before. 

A handful of them instead show a selection of fun facts about the rest of the world. ‘Did you know in Wales only one in 5 households has a dog?’, is what Lucky can see on the screen closest to him. It is a truly disheartening one, in his opinion, as he cannot wait to be deemed secure enough in his own happiness to be approved for a dog. Nearly everyone is, of course, but it is best to make sure nevertheless. 

As he has done every day since his Felicion so far, Lucky gets in line for the happy pills. The Felicion is a celebration on your 14th birthday, which marks your entry into adulthood. Before him in line, he can see the usual group of people in his age group. There is a tall Black woman, Alaia, whose hair is no longer in the dreadlocks they had been in yesterday, a Japanese man who is absently reading a novel, and a light-skinned redhead humming under their breath, who he thinks to remember from school. 

While he looks around the Halls of Bliss, the speakers placed over every door play the reminder that is usual for this time of the year. 

_« A happy day to you._  
_Remember to give your vote for the Euphemia Awards._ _  
Happiness is meant to be shared and those who contribute shall be rewarded. It is the greatest form of success. »_

The Euphemia awards were an annual festival for the state of Euphemia, rewarding the people who did the most for the happiness of the country, by making them ineligible for service in the colonies. More often than not, artists are chosen, but, occasionally, a scientist wins. A notable example being the inventor of the happy pills Ron Keyes who won the very first Euphemia Award. Since then, he became a very successful member of the government and is often seen on the Wall of Prosper during the weekends, when the highlights of the week are shown. Lucky personally cannot remember a time when someone who was neither artist nor scientist won the Awards. 

Lucky had put voting off more than he usually did, as he didn’t quite know who to vote. In the past, he had been one of the personal voters and would choose his friend Edwyn, who worked on a medication to stop nightmares and told the best jokes that he had ever heard.

He can, however, not do it this time. This is due to the fact that his friend had been sent to the colonies only a few weeks ago. While he had always suspected that it would happen sooner or later, it had still been a shock. Edwyn had, after all, been known to spit out his happy pills, always claiming that he was already happy enough without them, and usually with a smile back enough Lucky couldn't bring himself to protest. 

Maybe he could vote for RENA. He doesn’t know her. Still, he knows a lot of people who voted for her, or whoever else their favorite musician happened to be. She is a great musician, a truly magnificent Songwriter, and she has the voice of an angel. Her latest song ‘Joy’ is one of those songs that just can't seem to leave your head, no matter what you do. It was played all day through the speakers.

Before he knows it, it is Lucky's turn in line. There is someone handing out the pills today, a beautiful woman he would place vaguely around his age and yet can't remember ever seeing her before. She has brown blonde hair, full lips, a slim figure, and, most important of all, a beautiful smile. The nametag of her uniform revealed her name to be Merry. He isn’t going to forget her name.

8:15, it was time for the next rating. For the first time since Edwyn had left, Lucky voted five stars. 


End file.
